Stéphane Riot

Florian Hoos

Aymeric Marmorat

Lise Penillard

Ucka-Ludovic Ilolo

Chorégraphe d'entreprise, Fondateur de O' In Motion

Matthieu Dardaillon

Joséphine Bouchez

Co-fondatrice, Ticket for Change

Transcription

Choosing the legal structure for your organisation is an essential step in setting up your project, and one that will determine what you are able to do with it: it will determine the way in which decisions are taken within your organisation. It will influence what funding you can hope to go for, the tax regime that you will be subject to, or how many profits are shared or re-invested into your project. There are a huge range of legal structures and statuses. Entrepreneurs of change are often creative, and set up hybrid organisations that group various entities together with different statuses suited to their goals. Take a look at a representative example of the need to tailor the type of organisation to the context with Vitamine T, a back-to-work scheme introduced here by its director André Dupon. For the first 10 years of its existence, the Vitamine T group was managed using an association- based model, by activists, volunteers, social workers, when we wanted to scale things up, we were forced to adopt codes of practice, so to speak: the methods, processes of any economic player, without jeopardising or affecting our social goal as such. So forced to change governance, the association set up a financial and operational holding company, which itself was turned into a limited company and went out to look for, raise funds that an association belonging only to itself does not have the need or ability to raise. Therefore, your legal status will, and sometimes has to, evolve over time and as your project grows. Remember that is it crucial to do things in the right order. Start by defining your project and the chosen mode of operation then choose the form of organisation and governance to suit your goals. Any entrepreneur doing things the other way round risks being left paralysed when it comes to certain strategic
choices. Start by taking a look at the testimonial of Soufiane Iquioussen: what choice of legal status did he choose initially for Garages Solidaires? Why did the form of organisation then evolve? You will then hear from Benoit Mounier of Avise, who will show you the right questions to ask to choose the legal structure best suited to your project. These questions are particularly important. We suggest that you discuss them with those around you and consult with qualified specialists before deciding.